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Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-Of-Home Care REPORT Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care Author: Samantha Shewchuk, Ph.D. Co-Principal Investigators: Dr. Stephen Gaetz, Ph.D, President and CEO, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness David French, Director of Policy and Planning, A Way Home Canada ISBN: 9781550146738 Funded by Layout and Design by Chris Durand, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (Hub Solutions) Hub Solutions is a social enterprise embedded within the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (COH). Income generated from Hub Solutions fee-for-service work is reinvested into the COH to support research, innovation, policy recommendations and knowledge mobilization. Learn more: www.hubsolutions.ca Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care 2 Executive Summary 4 Recommendation # 1 Recommendation # 2 Recommendation # 3 Recommendation # 4 Recommendation # 5 Introduction 7 What Is Out-Of-Home Care? ϭ Other Key Definitions Used Throughout Report Canadian Statistics On Children And Youths In OHC Outcomes Associated With Young People Aging Out Of Care The Development of this Report 12 The Literature Review The Jurisdictional Scan Key Informant Interviews Findings 17 Practices That Support Positive Youth Transitions ϭ Extending Care To Age 21 ϭ Transition Planning Factors Known To Affect OHC Youth Homelessness Interviews ϭ Characteristics of Effective Interventions For Homeless Youths ϭ Jurisdictional Scan ϭ Interviews Areas Where Further Evidence Is Still Needed Conclusion And Recommendations 54 Recommendation # 1 Recommendation # 2 Recommendation # 3 Recommendation # 4 Recommendation # 5 REFERENCES 57 Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care 3 Executive Summary Research has shown that child welfare involvement and homelessness are closely linked, and that involvement in child protection is associated with an increased risk of homelessness (Dworsky & Courtney, 2009; Stewart et al., 2014; Wade & Dixon, 2006; Zlotnick et al., 2012). In the first pan-Canadian study on youth homelessness, Without a Home: The National Youth Homelessness Survey (2016), 57.8% of youths reported some type of involvement with child protection services over their lifetime. Compared to national data indicating that 0.3% of the general population receive child welfare services (Statistics Canada, 2011), youths experiencing homelessness are 193 times more likely to report interactions with the child welfare system. There are structural and systemic failures that have been found to be key drivers of both youth homelessness and child welfare involvement. These failures include broader societal issues (e.g., poverty, discrimination) and poor coordination and integration across systems that increase the likelihood that someone will become homeless. Failures to support the transitional needs of young people leaving child welfare have been found to result in: • Housing instability in care, including being removed from family home at an early age and living in foster care and/or group home setting; • Higher rates of unemployment, lack of educational engagement and achievement, involvement in corrections, and experiences of poverty; • Youths with early experiences of homelessness, especially before the age of 16, are more likely to report involvement with child protection services (73% vs. 57.8%). This suggests that preventing homelessness among young people who are under 16 and have child welfare involvement should be a policy priority, and; • Inequity such as structural forms of disadvantage and marginalization (e.g., colonialism, racism, poverty, homophobia, transphobia) contribute to the overrepresentation of children and families of particular races, ethnicities, implementation of Jordan’s Principle to reduce service gaps, delays, and denial of support for Indigenous children and youths1. Transitions from out-of-home care (OHC) is not the sole responsibility of the child welfare sector. Education, child and youth mental health, housing and homelessness services, and the labour market each have a role to play in supporting youths as they transition from care. It is important to recognize the breadth of community-based systems that can support transitions processes and that those components of the system need to be better integrated in partnership with government. This report was produced as part of the Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care Study, conducted by the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and A Way Home, Canada. As part of the study, the research team conducted a review of the literature (N=137), profiled 275 national and international programs and 1. Nichols, N., Schwan, K., Gaetz, S., Redman, M., French, D., Kidd, S., O’Grady, B. (2017). Child Welfare and Youth Homelessness in Canada: A Proposal for Action. Toronto: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press. Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care 4 policies, and interviewed 22 stakeholders (i.e., program providers, policymakers, advocates, and researchers) whose work focuses on supporting young people transitioning out of care. Captured within this report and its related supplemental files are the foundational components of promising practices and policies that exist across jurisdictions to support youths’ transitions out of care. From the factors known to affect a young person’s trajectory towards homelessness, to the characteristics for effective transitions, this knowledge can shift the negative life outcomes of former youths in OHC both in Canada and internationally. There is widespread agreement about the challenges and needs of youths transitioning out of care. Without timely intervention, youths are at-risk of experiencing a variety of negative life outcomes such as low educational attainment, under- and unemployment, homelessness, substance use, physical and mental health issues, incarceration, teen pregnancy and parenting issues, and early death. As a result of the above issues, the following five recommendations are provided: Recommendation # 1 All current and future transition-focused programs and services will be guided by current research, promising practices, and practitioner knowledge. • In collaboration with key stakeholders, develop a research agenda to move Canadian research on youths in OHC forward in a cohesive fashion. • Expand the current spectrum of accountable and evidence-based models of housing and services. • Expand the current spectrum of accountable and evidence-based models of extended foster care, experiential life skills programs, and the use of natural mentors. • Expand the current spectrum of accountable and evidence-based education, employment, and training programs in order to support young peoples’ access to long- term, sustainable employment and income. Recommendation # 2 Ensure young people leaving care have safe, stable transitions and the financial resources to support themselves independently. • Adjust provincial and territorial legislative wording to state that child welfare agencies shall begin transition planning when youths reach the age of 15 to 16. • Dedicate and train caseworkers to meet the unique needs of young people leaving care. ϭ Training should include information on positive youth development, harm reduction approaches, and trauma-informed care. • Develop and/or adapt preventative screening tools for early identification, connection, and outreach systems to provide the necessary resources needed to improve outcomes for youths most at-risk. Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care 5 Recommendation # 3 Expand options to enroll in extended foster care. • Adjust provincial and territorial legislative wording to state that child welfare agencies shall offer extended care services to all youths. • Expand options to enroll in extended foster care. This should include allowing young people to remain in foster care, if appropriate. ϭ More consistent information around extended care needs to be supplied to both professionals and young people. Recommendation # 4 Implement a coordinated Canada-wide response to support youths transitioning out of care and into homelessness. • Work in collaboration with the Child Welfare League of Canada and other local, provincial, and national stakeholders to develop and release a comprehensive transition- planning document for use by Canadian child welfare agencies. • Create systematic provincial and territorial data tracking and sharing systems. • Create structures to support authentic youth engagement. Recommendation # 5 Invest in crisis intervention services. • Increase the number of social housing options available to homeless youths across all Canadian provinces and territories. • Improve (using findings from Canadian-based evaluations) and expand emergency housing services to homeless youths, including emergency shelters, street outreach and drop-in centers, family reconnect, and Housing First programs. The implementation of these recommendations will require time, money, and system level commitment. Nevertheless, each recommendation should be given full consideration as implementation of these recommendations will result in coordinated and responsive systems that are able to address the needs of youths in OHC. Transition Supports to Prevent Homelessness for Youth Leaving Out-of-Home Care 6 Introduction In Canada, the historical oversight of policy and legislation that specifically focuses on transitions for youths
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